I’ve been studying iodine for decades. It is an essential element that we cannot live without, a fascinating substance that does not get enough attention from either conventional or holistic physicians. If I was limited to just one nutrient for the treatment of patients, I would choose iodine.

Iodine is concentrated in glandular tissues. The highest concentration occurs in the thyroid gland. However, all the tissues and the cells of the body require iodine for optimal function.

Glands use energy in the form of adenosine triphosphate (ATP) to ensure iodine is concentrated inside them. The reason for this is that glands cannot produce any hormone without an adequate supply of iodine.

Most people associate iodine with the thyroid gland, but it is also required by the ovaries, breasts, testicles, and adrenal glands to produce their hormones. Animal, human, and test-tube studies have shown that adequate iodine levels are required to promote the normal architecture of glands. In other words, if iodine is deficient, it sets in motion a pathological change resulting in disrupted structure of the glandular tissues. But if there is enough iodine in the glands, they will resemble healthy, normal tissue.

When I talk to physicians about iodine, I go into great detail about how its deficiency will result in the abnormal formation of glandular tissues. My hypothesis is that the reason why one in seven women have breast cancer and one in three men have prostate cancer — along with the rapid rise in other glandular cancers — is, in large part, because of iodine deficiency.

Iodine deficiency sets in motion a pathological process from which cysts are formed in the glandular tissue. If the deficiency continues, the cysts become hard and nodular. Later, the nodules can assume a hyperplastic appearance under a microscope. That is a precancerous condition.

If iodine deficiency continues over an even longer period, cancer can develop.

This mechanism could explain why we are seeing so many glandular cancers. Iodine levels have fallen so far that most Americans are deficient. In fact, studies from the National Health and Nutrition Examination Survey (NHANES) reveal that nearly 60 percent of women of childbearing age are iodine-deficient.

I have been testing iodine levels in patients for more than 20 years, and I can assure you that it’s not just women who are deficient. More than 97 percent of the 7,000+ patients I have tested showed low levels — most significantly low.